Here There Be Reptiles
by Thunderfoot
Summary: They thought the mission parameters were a little strange........but what awaited them was nothing like what they expected. (GW/Jurassic Park 2) Chapter 4 now uploaded
1. Default Chapter

Title: Here There Be Reptiles  
Author: Thunderfoot (Sheena)  
Rating: PG-13 (for now)  
Pairings: 3+4 and eventual 5+2.  
Archive: If you want it just ask, I don't bite (much ^_^)  
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, I don't own Jurassic park. I'm just playing with the characters.....don't sue.  
Warnings: Possible OOC (I'm still not very familar with the characters, I haven't seen much of the series and this is only my second ever attempt at GW fanfic) This part may be a little slow as it kinda sets the scene.   
Author Notes: Okay, I've seen different takes on what Quatres' Uchuu no Kokoro is. My take on it is it's kinda like the force ( I admit it, I'm a Star Wars fan ^_^ ) except he can't do any of that telekinetic stuff or mind tricks. All it does is tell him when people close to him are in trouble and warns him when something bad is going to happen and he can pick up on peoples emotions, not their thoughts though.  
  
This is based loosely on Jurassic Park: Lost World (I love that movie!)  
  
Feedback is greatly appriciated!  
  
**thoughts**   
"Speech"   
-------------character change-------------------   
Sound effects and com talk  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Sooooo, we gotta go to this island and stop OZ from capturing the local wildlife. Ooookay........" *~*Duo Maxwel*~*  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Life was good. It was summer, the weather was mild and there was no school. To top it off there had been no missions for the past month, so Duo was indulging in something he got to do very rarely, curl up in a corner of the current safe house (or should that be safe mansion) and read. The mansion they were staying at was one of the numerous Winner estates and had a large library selection.  
  
At the moment he was curled up in one of the easy chairs under the library's large windows. In his lap was a random book, with several more on the floor beside him. The book may have been open but he wasn't reading, he was staring out the window watching Quatre and Trowa wander around in the gardens.  
  
**I wonder where the other two are. Let's see now......Heero, that's not too hard, he'll be up in his room on that damned laptop of his. 'Ch, I swear he was born with that thing!**  
  
He started snickering at the mental images that bought up **Wu'll be outside somewhere, meditating I'll bet. Or maybe practising his martial arts, shirtless, with sweat dripping down his body, running over taunt........_down_ boy!** This was getting to be a common occurrence. He wasn't quite sure when it had started but he'd been noticing the Shenlong pilot more and more like _that_ and less and less the other way. **I've gotta stop doing that. Quatre is starting to notice** The blonde boy had caught Duo staring at the Chinese teen the other day, he hadn't said anything but the sly grin and wink he'd given Duo had been enough.  
  
As though his thoughts had summoned him, Wufei appeared in the Library doorway. "Maxwell, what are you doing in here?" The look on his face was priceless.  
  
"What'd's it look like I'm doin' Wu? I'm readin'" Duo flashed the cover of the book at him and grinned. **Floored 'im! I'm probably the last person he'd expect in the Library**  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Wu_fei_, Maxwell, Wufei"  
  
He'd always suspected that there was more to Duo than met the eye, so he really shouldn't have been surprised to see him in here. **Whenever I think I have him figured out he throws out another seeming unrelated piece about himself**  
  
Duo Maxwell was a puzzle to Wufei. As a scholar he had always prided himself on his puzzle solving abilities, and yet he could not figure out the enigma that was the braided American pilot.  
  
"Whatever Wuffy"  
  
Sigh **Sometimes I think he purposefully tries to antagonise me. Scratch that, I _know_ he does it on purpose** "As much as I enjoy discussing the pronunciation of my name" he leant against the door frame and gazed coolly at Duo "Yui is looking for you. We have a mission"  
  
Without a word Duo stood up, placed the book with the others on the floor, and walked out the door. Wufei followed him with his eyes until he was lost around the corner. Looking over at the pile of books on the floor he shook his head. Duo Maxwell was a puzzle, one which he intended to solve.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
The five pilots had gathered themselves in one of the many drawing rooms in Quatres' mansion and were already deep into planning their mission.  
  
"Soooooo, we gotta go to this island and stop OZ from capturing the local wildlife. Oooookay......" These had to be some of the strangest orders he'd ever received. "I don't suppose they mentioned _what_ the local wildlife _is_ did they?"  
  
"No, the doctors have no idea what lives on Isla Sorna" Heero pressed a couple of keys on his laptop, calling up a map of the area he began to point out different areas "OZ will be landing here on the north side. We will land here on the north eastern side. Camp will be on the cliff here"  
  
"Where is the OZ camp?" asked Quatre peering over Heero's shoulder.  
  
"Here" He tapped a section of the screen which turned red.  
  
"Transport" Trowa got up to join Quatre at Heeros' shoulder.  
  
"We go by shuttle to this island, where we will be met by a contact with all of our gear for this mission. we then go by boat to Isla Sorna"  
  
"Does anybody else think this is weird?"  
  
"It is odd that OZ would be interested in the wildlife of this island" Wufei looked over at Duo who had curled himself up on one of the couches like a cat "but I don not believe there shall be any difficulties"  
  
Duo tugged on his braid "Famous last words Wu, famous last words"  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Two days after that planning session in one of his mansions found Quatre and Trowa standing in a busy market place awaiting the arrival of their contact. The shuttle to the island, their first and last stop before heading to Isla Sorna, had been relatively uneventful. Duo had been throwing around different possibilities as to what the 'wildlife' could be, some of them had been on the outrageous side, and alternating between teasing and casting, what he thought were secretive, glances at Wufei. **It's cute how he does that when he thinks no one is watching. He knows I know he likes him, but I don't think he realises that Wufei likes him.......actually I don't think _Wufei_ realises that he likes Duo. If they don't do something soon I'm going to be tempted to play matchmaker**  
  
If the first leg of the journey was anything to go by, then this mission was going to be smooth sailing, leaving plenty of time for Quatre to figure out how to get Wufei and Duo together. At least he hoped it was going to be smooth sailing. He'd had a dull ache in his chest since they'd taken off. Absently rubbing at it while he kept an eye out for their contact, he mulled over what type of wildlife would interest OZ so much, and how to give Wufei and Duo a push in the right direction.  
  
"Something the matter little one?" Murmured Trowa, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "That's the fourth time in as many minutes you've rubbed at your chest like that"  
  
"Am I being that obvious?" He went to rub at his chest again but stopped himself. Chuckling he looked up at his lover " I guess I am. I just......have this feeling, this ache in my chest. I _think_ my uchuu no kokoro is trying to tell me something but I'm not sure"  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Trowa glanced at the blonde boy standing next to him. He'd learnt two things about him some time ago. Firstly _never_ underestimate him. He may look small, fragile and innocent but he was anything but **Small, yes. Fragile, no. Innocent, definitely not!** He had to fight back a grin. Second, _always_ trust Quatres' _feelings_ as they usually always tended to be right.  
  
"You're not sure?"  
  
"Well...." He grinned impishly "It could have just been those sandwiches I had at lunchtime"  
  
Trowa smiled and put his arm around Quatres' shoulders **He's trying to make the both of us feel better by cracking jokes. His humor needs a bit of work though** "We'll just have to keep our eyes open then". A flash of movement in the crowd off to his left caught his eye "I believe our contact has arrived". He gave a small nod in the general direction he'd seen the contact.  
  
Quatre turned to where Trowa had indicated in time for the contact to materialize out of the crowd in front of them. He wasn't much to look at. Probably in his mid to late twenties, casually dressed in jeans and a white 'Bite Me' T-shirt. Looking Quatre up and down he initiated the pass phrase "The wizard is feeling restless tonight"  
  
"And Dorothy is has gone and lost her shoes" Duo had fallen out of his chair laughing when he heard the pass phrase, saying something along the lines of 'who thinks up this stuff?!' Trowa tended to agree with him.  
  
Seemingly satisfied with his answer the contact continued. "Your boat is at the south docks, pier 46. All of your equipment is stowed onboard and you have all the nautical charts for the area in and around Isla Sorna".  
  
"Thank you" said Quatre, always polite no matter what the situation.  
  
"You know none of the locals will go near the place"  
  
"And why is that" Trowa asked. Any information this man could give on the island could be valuable.  
  
"They call them, the chain of islands Sorna belongs to, the Five Deaths. People, sailors and locals alike, have gone there and never returned, so now none of the locals will go there".  
  
Quatre absently rubbed at his chest again as he stared at their contact.  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Oh wow!, hey Wu, WU! Check this out, oh this is so totally cool! This place has everything _including_ the kitchen sink!" It hadn't taken Duo very long to start exploring the gear they would be using for the mission. Currently he was bouncing around in the trailer that would be their base of operations, practically tearing the place apart.  
  
Wufei was staying well out of his way, watching him intently. **He seems fine now, no where near as upset as he was before** Duo had been nearly as shaken up as Quatre had been when pilots 03 and 04 had returned from meeting the contact. **I admit the stories about this chain of islands is disturbing, equally so since we know that something there had caught OZ's attention**  
  
Something fell into his line of sight and he looked up, backpedaled, tripped over one of the numerous crates of gear scattered around the deck, and landed on his back. Belatedly he realized it was only Duo wearing some strange contraption over his head and eyes. Said pilot was now sprawled against the side of the trailer laughing loudly, still wearing the odd contraption.  
  
"Kisama! Maxwell, what the hell are you wearing?!" Duo held his arms out from the side and did a small pirouette, braid swinging in a lazy arc over his behind. **And what a nice behind that is** He mentally slapped himself and snapped his eyes back to Duo's face.  
  
"They're night vision goggles. You like? You flip his switch here and.....OW!" Duo quickly pulled the goggles off his head and began blinking rapidly "oooh, after image. Cool! Hey Wu, you gotta check some of this stuff out! C'mon!" Without any room for argument Duo grabbed Wufei's arm and dragged him into the trailer.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Heero was worried, not that you could tell that from his cool exterior but he was. After Trowa and Quatre had reported back with stories of where they were headed he had run a search on Isla Sorna. what he had found was disturbing. In the past twenty years over one hundred people had gone missing in the area.  
  
**That is one hundred too many for my liking.** The other pilots were the closest thing to family Heero had ever had, concequently he was protective of them.......not that they were ever going to find out about it.   
  
**Let's see what else there might be on this island. I don't like going in uninformed** Running a search for anything that might be listed on Isla Sorna would take time. He checked their ETA: 2 hours **I just hope that's enough time**  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Delicately juggling two cups of tea, Trowa made his way over to where Quatre was watching Duo drag Wufei around. He had the oddest look on his face. "Quatre" he called quietly so as not to startle the blonde Arabian "I bought you some tea"  
  
"Thank you Trowa" Quatre accepted the cup and went back to watching Duo and Wufei.  
  
Trowa studied Quatre as he watched the other two pilots **He seems calmer now. He's not constantly rubbing at his chest anymore at least. I don't know whether that's a good sign or a bad sign** He took a sip of his tea and winced slightly as it burnt his tongue.  
  
"Those two are clueless....It's cute!" Quatre turned to Trowa and his face took on that I-really-know-I-shouldn't-do-this-but-I-really-want-to-play-matchmaker expression. Trowa had seen it once before when he had been dragged into helping set up one of the Manguanacs.  
  
He looked over to Duo and Wufei and studied them for a moment **Quatre's right. They're clueless. I'm tempted........but then again, I remember what happened the last time he played matchmaker** "No"  
  
"Now what?"  
  
"Don't interfere"  
  
"But..."  
  
"No!" With that Trowa picked Quatre up, slung him over his shoulder, and carried him like a sack of potatoes towards the cabins. He was fully intent on putting Quatre's mind to _other_ uses.  
  
"TROWA!!"  
  
It would be quite some time before anybody would see either of the two again.  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Duo started snickering when he heard Quatres' shriek "Somebody's gonna get lucky"  
  
"Pardon?" Wufei looked up from where he was sitting and gave Duo a confused look.  
  
**He's cute when he does that** "I'm talkin' 'bout Quatre. Tro just slung him over his shoulder and headed towards the cabins. I don't think we'll be seein' either of 'em for a while"  
  
"Oh..." realization flooded Wufei's face and he blushed "Oh!"   
  
This set Duo off on another round of snickering.  
  
"I fail to see what is so funny Maxwell"  
  
**Oh, nothin' much, you're just too cute when you're flustered** "Nuthin' Wu-man. Say where's Heero. I haven't seen his perfect soldierness since we left port. Don't tell me he's gone an' holed himself up with that laptop of his _again_? I swear that guy's permanently attached to that thing. Spending so much time on it can't be healthy. Y'know the last time we roomed together I could've sworn he spent more time on that thing than off it! I suppose I'd better go an' get 'im off it for a while, don't want his eyes goin' square on 'im. He wouldn't want that, it'd make him too noticeable on missions and we can't have that now can we?" He started to head towards the doorway intent on finding Heero and dragging him off his laptop, even if it killed him. "Hey, you comin' Wu?"  
  
  
  
"Wu_fei_, Maxwell, Wufei" It was almost an ingrained response now.  
  
"Whatever Wu, coming?" He hadn't even bothered to turn around. If he had, he might have seen the strange look in Wufei's eyes. Or the way that Wufei seemed to follow how he walked, focusing on his braid and how it caressed the Americans behind almost lovingly.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------  
  
It had only taken him an hour to find something relevant on their destination, and a possible explanation of OZ's interest in the place  
  
Heero didn't like being surprised, he _really_ didn't like it! So he was more than slightly pissed with the information on his screen. To top it off it looked like the doctors might have known about what was on the island in the first place and hadn't told them.  
  
Ownership: InGen corporation. Biological research facility  
  
Details Y/N ?  
  
**Biological research. I do _not_ like the sound of this. If the doctors knew why didn't they tell us?** He hit the 'Y' key with a little more force than necessary.  
  
Accessing.....Please wait  
  
The information flashed up on the screen. Heeros' eyes widened.  
  
"Masaka..........."  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Sir!" One of the many officers assigned to this mission saluted as the commanding officer entered the bridge. "We're scheduled to reach Isla Sorna in just under two hours."  
  
"Very good Ensign. Maintain the ships present course" Metal glinted as the lights reflected off his mask. **time to see if the rumors I've been hearing are true**  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
It didn't take Duo, with Wufei in tow, long to find Heero. After all, there were only so many places on their ship a person could hide, and Duo Maxwell was nothing if not persistent.  
  
They found him up on the bridge staring at his laptop. **Am I psychic or what? Now how to go about this.....I could ignore him and leave him.......naaah** Plastering a maniacal grin on his face, Duo too a flying leap and attached himself to Heeros' back.  
  
"Heero! Man! How's it going? What're ya doin' up here? Don't you know it's not good for your eyes to stare at a screen for too long? You're eyes'll go square!" Throughout this Heero maintained his I-am-a-rock impersonation. He didn't move, he didn't blink. He just sat there with a stunned expression staring at the screen.  
  
**Back up a bit here. Heero is stunned?! Shit, that happens, well never!** He moved around in front of Heero and waved his hand in front of his face. "Hellooooooo. Is anybody in there? Hello, Heero, wakey wakey. Yoohoo, Earth to Heero, Earth callin' Heero, come in." When that didn't work he rapped his knuckles on his head.  
  
"Masaka....."  
  
"Oh, he speaks. Sooo, why were you zoned?"  
  
"That's.......impossible"  
  
Duo sighed and dropped his head into his hands "This is getting nowhere fast. Heero _what_ exactly is impossible?"  
  
Finally blinking, Heero looked up from his laptop, well, where his laptop _would_ have been had Duo not been standing in front of him, and focused on Duo. "Duo go and get the others".  
  
"I'll go" announced Wufei who had been standing forgotten in the doorway.  
  
"Wu, when did you get here?"  
  
"Maxwell, _you_ dragged me here" he turned and walked, well stalked, out.  
  
"Oh, yeah" He looked sheepish.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Wufei had to get out of that room. He had to think. When Duo had glomped onto Heero like that he'd felt a twinge of well...well something.  
  
Actually, it had been more than a twinge. When Duo had glomped onto Heero he had felt.....jealous of Yui. **That's ridiculous. Why would I feel jealous of Yui. Maxwell is nothing more than a fellow pilot, and a puzzle that needs to be solved.** He sighed and headed towards the cabins where he assumed Trowa had carted Quatre off to earlier. He really did _not_ want to interrupt them but a pissed off Yui could be a scary thing, then again so could a pissed off Quatre.  
  
Walking _very_ slowly down to the cabins, Wufei continued to mull over what he knew of Duo. **He plays the joker, yet he calls himself Shinigami. He acts like an airheaded fool around us and yet I've _seen_ his results at school _and_ I saw some of those books he had in the library, they were definitely _not_ light reading. There appears to be some brains to go with his beauty** He blinked, that was about the fourth time he'd caught himself thinking something along those lines with in the past hour.  
  
Plus, he realized with a groan, he'd been oggling Duo's body earlier. **An I was doing it the other day. Then I was jealous of the attention he gave Yui. Dear gods! I'm falling for Duo Maxwell!**. He wasn't anywhere near as surprised at his discovery as he thought he would have **I think I need to have a talk with Trowa later.**  
  
He'd reached the cabins during his musings **damn**. Listening intently, with more than a little embarrassment, he held his breath. **Well I can't _hear_ anything. That's a good sign** He walked to the door to Trowa and Quatre's room and knocked on the door.  
  
There was a groan and a muffled curse that sounded like _Quatre_. **Then again maybe they're just very quiet....**  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Quatre was curled contentedly up to Trowa. Moments like this were few and far between, so he was a little miffed when someone knocked on the door. He groaned and swore softly.  
  
"Barton, Winner, if you two are finished Yui wants to see us all up on the bridge immediately" Wufei sounded almost embarrassed.   
  
Quatre snickered. **Poor Wufei, probably drew the short straw and had to come down here**. "Okay Wufei, thank you". The sound of hasty footsteps heading away from the door was his only reply. Still snickering Quatre poked his lover in the ribs "Trowa, wake up"  
  
A hand snaked out and grabbed his wrist. The next thing he knew was underneath Trowa and getting a thorough kissing. "I heard. We'd better head up before Yui comes looking for us"  
  
"Mmmnn......don' wanna" Quatre replied and tried to pull Trowa down for another kiss.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Twenty minutes later the five pilots were gathered in their ships small bridge. Heero, as usual, was seated in front of his laptop. Duo appeared to be a little on the ansty side and kept shooting Heero glares from where he was standing near one of the corners. Wufei was standing nearby Duo, and kept sending him odd looks.  
  
**Could it be Wufei is finally noticing Duo. Poor Quatre may not get to play matchmaker after all.** Trowa chuckled silently. He was standing on the opposite side of the room to Duo and Wufei, with Quatre standing next to him.   
  
Never one to beat about the bush, Duo got straight to the point. "All right Heero, _now_ can you tell us what was so damn impossible"  
  
"Isla Sorna was owned by a corporation known as InGen back in the late twentieth century. They also owned another island called Isla Nebula. There they built a theme park that never opened and at least four people died of unknown causes. There were no bodies".  
  
"What does this have to do with where we are going Heero?" Quatre had begun to rub at his chest again. Trowa wrapped his arm around his waist.  
  
"Isla Sorna was their breeding ground for the park. It was also listed as a biological research facility".  
  
"Shit!" Duo was off the wall he was leaning on.  
  
"They specialized in DNA and cloning. The successfully cloned some extinct animals and bred them for the park. When it failed to open, they abandoned Isla Sorna and turned the animals loose."  
  
Wufei looked thoughtful. "My guess OZ is after the research on cloning"  
  
"Nuh uh, you're forgettin' that our mission is to stop OZ gettin' their hands on the local _wildlife_." Duo looked over at Heero and gave him a hard look. "There something you're forgettin' to mention. Like what _exactly_ they cloned?"  
  
"Dinosaurs. They cloned dinosaurs".  
  
"You're shittin' me......right?! This is some kind of joke, Heero?"  
  
Heero caught Duo's eyes and held his gaze. "Iie".  
  
  
tbc  



	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or the storyline. I'm just fiddling around with it.  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
It was official, Heero Yui had finally lost it completely. He'd gone bonkers, gone off the deep end, cracked, flipped, lost a few screws, Duo was sure of it. **Those psychotic laughs of his should have been a dead giveaway that something was not right in his head**  
  
"All right Yui, there is no way you said what I think you just said. There is now way, absolutely no fuckin' _way_ they could've cloned dinosaurs! It's impossible man!"  
  
"Duo, what do you mean? Cloning _is_ possible, it has been done before" Quatre looked out at him from Trowas protective embrace.  
  
"I'm tellin' ya Q, It's impossible. No-one has _ever_ been able to obtain a complete DNA strand of _any_ type of dinosaur, and the way Heero is talkin' they were able to clone _more_ than one species." If he had been in a better mood he would have found the stunned expressions on their faces amusing.   
  
"I'm gonna go an' check the equipment for landing if anybody needs me" He stalked out of the bridge and down to where the gear had been stowed. **They probably think I'm over reacting.**  
  
**Of _course_ they think you're over reacting. You've never given them _any_ hints that you're anything other than a 'Braided Baka'** He winced, sometimes he hated his self imposed mask.  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Another piece of the Maxwell puzzle had been thrown out. **Beautiful, complex, intelligent and he appears to know something about dinosaurs** Wufei glanced around at his fellow pilots, minus Duo. All were doing fair impersonations of fish out of water.  
  
**If Yui is correct** He felt the flare of jealousy at the mention of the boys name **I have _got_ to get that under control. But if he is correct, then Duos' knowledge may come in handy**  
  
"Maxwell is right" Heero stated. "No full DNA strand of any dinosaur has ever been found."   
  
Wufei could almost hear the 'but how the hell he knew that I _don't_ know' in Yui's voice.  
  
"Then how did they clone a dinosaur if they didn't have a full DNA strand? I didn't think it was possible!" Quatre was looking paler than he usually did.  
  
I'm willing to bet they added something in to make a complete strand" at Heeros' nod Wufeis' eyses widened "They could not have added a humans'. Do they have no honor?!"  
  
"No, they used a frogs".  
  
Simple and to the point. But the mental image of a croaking, hopping Tyrannosaurus-Rex that flitted through Wufeis' mind caused him to snort with suppressed laughter.  
  
Trowa just raised an eyebrow.  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Have you anything else to report Heero?" Heero shook his head and Trowa looked to the others "anybody else?"  
  
"I am kind of curious how Duo knows so much about dinosaurs, especially a fact like the DNA"  
  
"I have found, Quatre" stated Wufei from his corner "That there is much more to Duo Maxwell than meets the eye. We have barely scratched the surface of who he is. Barton, May I speak to you for a moment in private?"  
  
Trowa nodded and motioned for Wufei to follow him. He bent down and placed a kiss on the top of Quatres' head. "I'll be back soon little one".  
  
"I'll go and see if Duo is all right"  
  
He walked out of the bridge and heard Wufei follow behind him. Heading towards his cabin he motioned the Chinese teen inside. "What do you want to talk about?".  
  
"How did you know you were in love with Quatre?"  
  
Trowa could almost see the little victory dance that Quatre would be doing right about now. He suppressed a smirk. "Any reason you want to know?"  
  
"I....." He seemed to think about how he was going to word what he was saying. "I have found myself....thinking about a....about someone. I find myself unable to look away when they enter the room and am extremely jealous when they show affection to other people".  
  
**I think I have a fair idea who this person is, if the past week or so and Quatre are anything to go by** "It's Duo, isn't it?"  
  
Wufei took on the deer-in-headlights look before he seemed to deflate "Am I that obvious?"  
  
"Only to Quatre and myself. I don't think Duo has noticed yet" **Only because he's too busy fixating on _you_ to notice you doing the same to _him_** "All I can suggest is to talk to him. You might be surprised".  
  
"Thank you, Trowa". He bowed and left.  
  
**Who would have thought that I'd end up offering _romantic_ advice to a fellow pilot** He shook his head a chuckled quietly.  
  
------------------------------------------------------------  
  
It was harder than Quatre had originally thought it would be to find Duo. He wasn't with the equipment as he said he would be, though it was strewn about as though he had been there at some point. He eventually found him sitting on the railings at the bow of the ship, watching Isla Sorna loom steadily closer in the distance. "Duo, are you okay?"  
  
"Yeah Q, I'm fine. What're you doin' out here? I'd thought you'd be shacked up with Tro again by now"  
  
"Well....I was looking for you actually" He pointedly _ignored_ the Trowa comment, no need to give him any _more_ ammunition for his teasing. "Mind if I join you?"  
  
"Be my guest" This was a different Duo than what he was used to seeing. He was...calmer somehow..  
  
"So..How did you know about that stuff on dinosaurs"  
  
Duo gave a small smile. "It was a childhood thing. I was fascinated by them so I read everything I could"  
  
"Oh" He started to develop a sly grin that, if Duo had seen, would have sent him running for cover. "So _tell_ me Duo, what _do_ you think of Wufei?"  
  
"What do you...."  
  
"I've _seen_ the way you look at him. Admit it, you like him!" Quatre was practically bouncing where he was sitting, grinning his head off. Duo was scared he was going to bounce off the railings and into the water, then he'd have to try and explain to Trowa why his lover was fish food.  
  
**Come on, admit it! I'm going to get the two of you together if it kills me. I think I have a fair idea what Wufei wanted to talk to Trowa about....I'll get the details later** "I won't tell him, don't worry"  
  
Quatre decided it was time to pull out the heavy artillery. He decided to use his secret weapon. Years of growing up among his twenty-nine sisters had honed this particular attack to an art form. Repeated use did _not_ make the victim immune either, he should know, he used it on Trowa often enough and it _still_ worked just as well as it did the first time. Even Heero 'Perfect Soldier' Yui crumbled under its' attack.  
  
He _looked_ at Duo.  
  
Duos' eyes widened and he started to back away. "Don't _look_ at me like that!"  
  
He added a slight misting to his eyes.  
  
"I said _don't_, it won't work" He didn't sound so certain.  
  
He widened his eyes.  
  
"QUATRE!"  
  
**Just a little more should do it** He trembled his lower lip.  
  
"Shit! Oh, no, don't _please_. Don't _do_ that!"  
  
He let his eyes tear up a bit more. **I think I got him!**  
  
"All right, all right! Enough already! Yes I like him. Are you happy?" He didn't look happy with himself.  
  
His face changed immediately into a grin, not a trace of tear anywhere. **Cheer up Duo, not even _Heero_ can stand up to that! All bow to the master of the puppy eyes.** He fought back a snicker. "Not quite. How much and for how long?"  
  
"Quatre!"  
  
He started to tremble his bottom lip again.  
  
"You're a manipulative little bastard, you know that don't you" It was more of a statement than a question, and Duo couldn't _quite_ hide the grin on his face.  
  
Quatre simply nodded and kept _looking_.  
  
Duo sighed and looked back out to the island, which had grown larger since their conversation began. "I can't stop thinking about him. I seem to notice the smallest things about him, like how his cheek muscle below his left eye will twitch slightly when he's pissed. I find it adorable, and you may _not_ tell him I said that!. I'm not sure how long it's been going on. A while I guess".  
  
Quatre put a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you Duo, for being honest". **I promise, I _will_ get you two together**.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
There had been no problems with their landing. OZ had either not spotted them, or they had yet to land. Once all of their gear had been taken off the boat, Heero set the auto-pilot to go and wait six nautical miles off the coast. A simple signal from their communicators would bring the boat back.  
  
Currently the Gundam pilots were trekking through the undergrowth towards the OZ camp, much to Duos' disgust. He was hot, tired, thirsty and black was so _not_ conductive to the heat. He felt like he was going to roast at any second. "Hey Heero, how much further man, I'm roastin' here!"  
  
"Their camp should be over the next ridge, so shut up baka before they hear you".  
  
**Oh, Heero is being sooooo nice today. What crawled up his arse and died?** Duo poked his tongue out at Heero's back.  
  
The ground was starting to incline steeply upwards so Duo put his head down to make the climb easier. He was _very_ tempted to start going 'are we there yet?' just to see how long it would take to get a reaction out of Heero.  
  
He looked up as Wufei slowed to walk next to him. "Are you all right Duo?".  
  
He looked concerned, Duo's heart decided to do flip-flops. **He called me Duo, not Maxwell, not baka, not a million and one other things, but _Duo_** He then realised he probably had a goofy grin on his face.  
  
"Yeah, Wuffers, I'm goin' A-OK" He flashed a victory sign and grinned. The effect was lost as he tripped over an upraised tree root and took a nose dive into the ground. He screwed his eyes shut and prepared for impact.  
  
Five seconds later he opened his eyes **Usually you go _splat_ by now**.  
  
He was securely wrapped in Wufeis arms, and was being held off the ground **I could stay like this forever**. "Umm, Wufei, thanks for the save but you can put me down now" ** Not that I really want down, but.....**  
  
Another five seconds and Duo was still in Wufeis' arms.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Wufei had been worried about Duo. Usually he was loud and talkative, but as the trek through the jungle like growth had continued he slowly grew silent. He'd heard the note of exhaustion in his tone when he'd asked Heero how much further to the OZ camp, so he'd slowed down to make sure the American was all right.   
  
Closer inspection showed the American was definitely not okay. The weather had been hot enough that Wufei had discarded his white over shirt before their trek had begun, but Duo had done nothing about his attire.  
  
His cheeks were flushed red and he was sweating profusely. His bangs were sticking to his face and his braid had seen better days, with pieces of hair falling out all over the place. His eyes, when he looked at him after asking whether he was okay, had a slightly unfocused look to them. When Duo had tried to assure him that, yes, he was fine, he'd tripped on a barely upraised root and not even tried to save himself.  
  
Wufei had caught him and picked him up. He was not going to put him down, even after he had asked him. He was _not_ going to let Duo injure himself unnecessarily **Admit it, you like holding him.**  
  
"Everyone stop!" The group turned around and looked at him, and the boy he held in his arms.  
  
Quatre was trying to hide a smirk, as was Trowa. Heero was, well if Wufei didn't know any better he looked slightly, very _very_ slightly, amused.   
  
"Duo!" Quatre, ever the mother hen, rushed back to make sure the boy was all right. "What happened?".  
  
Ignoring the blonde, Wufei adjusted how he was holding Duo for more comfort and looked at Heero. "Is there a stream around here? The heat is affecting Duo".  
  
"Wu, I'm _fine_! I just tripped".  
  
"You do not _look_ fine" he shot back.  
  
Heero remained silent and looked at the two of them before heading in a different direction than before. "There is a stream this way".  
  
Wufei followed with Duo still in his arms. He kept trying to tell himself that it was only to prevent him hurting himself, and then gave up. **This might be the only time I get to hold him, I'm going to make it last.**  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Quatre had nearly done a victory dance right then and there on the spot when he'd turned around at Wufeis call. Then he'd got a look at Duo **He doesn't look too good. All that black must _really_ be making him hot!**  
  
He had to smile when he heard Duo weakly protesting that he was fine as they walked towards the stream. **He's probably loving every minute of this.**  
  
"Trowa, isn't that the cutest thing you've seen?"  
  
"Duo shouldn't have worn all that black".  
  
"True, but when was the last time you saw him in anything _but_ black? I'm not sure if he has clothes in any other colour" Quatre made a mental note to take Duo shopping when this mission was over. The boy didn't own much as far as he knew, he'd only ever seen him carrying the one carry bag whenever he moved safe houses.  
  
Trowa nodded "You're right. They do look cute."  
  
By this time they had reached the stream. It was a picturesque spot. Wufei had placed Duo in a shady area on a fallen tree and was currently trying to get his top off, while Duo was trying to keep his top _on_. It was funny to watch. Quatre had a hard time suppressing his laughter as Heero moved in to help Wufei.  
  
Quatre turned back to Trowa with a chuckle "Duo doesn't have a chance. By the way, what _did_ Wufei want to talk to you about earlier? Was it about Duo?"  
  
"In a way yes. He wanted to know how I knew I was in love with you"  
  
"Oh?" Heero and Wufei still hadn't managed to get Duos' top off **I've got to hand it to him, he sure can be stubborn. He still doesn't have a chance though**.  
  
"I figured it was about Duo and told him so" He reached an arm out and wrapped it around Quatres' waist, pulling him close. "It really _isn't_ our place to interfere".  
  
The sound of rending cloth and an indignant yelp caused Quatre and Trowa to look over to where Duo and the other two were. Heero had managed to rip the black top off Duo, only to reveal a white undershirt which Wufei was giving a disbelieving look. "Oh _my_, no wonder Duo was so hot!"  
  
**That shirt will be useless now. I'm definitely taking Duo shopping after this**  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"aah, Lieutenant Merquise, there you are. I've been looking all over for you. I can't tell you how pleased I was to hear that you would be assisting me with this venture. I must say it is an _honor_ to finally meet the Lightning Count, not to mention work with him!" A short balding man with spectacles wearing a ridiculous safari outfit was currently heading in his direction. [1]  
  
Inwardly, Zechs cringed. Peter Ludlow was an annoying, shifty man. Unfortunately Zechs had to play nice to him. He was impressively wealthy and an influential man within the Romerfeller foundation. **I'd like nothing better than to toss him overboard**  
  
Taking a swig at his ever present pocket flask the man continued, unaware of his audiences discomfort. "I imagine you must be wondering what we're going after here."  
  
"I have heard rumors of..."  
  
"Dinosaurs my good man!" Ludlow cut him off, slapping him on the back. "Were going dinosaur hunting. Anyway, must fly. I have a million and one things to do before landing today. Toodleloo"  
  
Zechs _really_ didn't like that man.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------  
  
"I can't believe you ripped my shirt Heero. You could have just _asked_"  
  
"Baka, we did ask"  
  
"Nooo, you didn't. You just tried, successfully I might add, to rip..my..shirt..off!. Unless you hadn't noticed _Yui_, I don't exactly have the largest wardrobe around".  
  
**He sounds mad** Heero thought **But we had to get him out of his top, and he was _not_ co-operating**  
  
"Hn"  
  
"Oh _great_, the grunting wonder strikes again"  
  
Heero just ignored him and passed the remains of the black top to Wufei. "Soak that in some water" turning back to Duo he cast an eye over what he was wearing. "Top.off"  
  
Duo opened his mouth to reply but stopped as an echoing boom began and the ground started to shake. "What the hell _is_ that?! It doesn't sound like a mobile suit!"  
  
Heero pulled his gun from...wherever he pulls his gun from, and scanned the area. The sound grew louder and he narrowed his eyes as the bushes to his left started to rustle, and something _big_ came through.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
[1] I wasn't originally going to use any of the JP characters but this guy, and a couple of others just screamed 'Dino Fodder'......I'm not too fond of this guy.   
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Oh, oh my, Trowa what _is_ that?" Quatres' eyes were searching franticly for the origin of the constant booming.  
  
Trowa watched as Heero pulled his gun and pointed it at some moving bushes. **I would _love_ to know where he hides that thing. I didn't even know he was carrying it!**. He pulled his own gun **I doubt it will do much good against whatever is making that noise, it sounds _big_**  
  
Heeros' eyes widened comically as he got his first look at whatever he could see. Moments later Trowa could see why.  
  
Out of the bushes stomped a heard of, well Trowa wasn't sure what exactly they were, but they were dinosaurs. **They really did it. They cloned dinosaurs**  
  
"Holy _shit_!" Duos' voice had raised by a couple of octaves.  
  
Trowa looked at his gun, at the dinosaurs, back at his gun, and then put it away. **This thing's too small to make an impact on something _that_ big........If I had my Gundam here maybe, but not my gun**.  
  
"Duo, what are they?" Trowa looked back at Quatre. He had this awed look on his face that he usually got just before he went and did something stupid.   
  
**Uh oh**  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"I'm not _quite_ sure what species they are Q. They _look_ like   
Stegosaurus', but _they_ have _clubbed_ tails, these things have spiked   
tails. They're herbivores though".  
  
**Oh, God! They actually did it. I thought Heero was kiddin' They're so   
_big_** Duo watched as the heard moved downstream about one hundred meters and then stopped. **There's a mummysaur, a daddysaur, a babysaur, and all its' aunts and uncles**. He was very tempted to start cooing, it looked like Quatre already was.  
  
He froze when something Heero had said earlier came back to him. **The way Heero was talkin', they cloned more than one species** He looked down at his feet. **If they cloned more than one species, what _did_ they clone? Heero said that four or so people died on that other island, and that there were no bodies**  
  
He looked back up again and watched as Quatre started walking slowly towards the herd **If they only cloned herbivores there would've been bodies, but there weren't. That means somethin' ate 'em** His eyes widened **That means they cloned carnivores as well!**  
  
**If I were the head of InGen, what would I clone? somethin' that would   
bring in a _lot_ of money. That means there are probably some Tyrannosaurus-Rexs' runnin' 'round here somewhere. If we run into them we'll be fine as long as we don't move. It's visual acuity is based on movement. I'll have to warn the guys... What the _hell_ is Quatre _doin'_?!**  
  
Quatre had managed to sneak up to the herd, near where the baby dinosaur was munching away. It looked as though he was trying to pat the baby. **Jeezus Quatre, I know you're touchy feely an' everythin' but are you _insane_?!. If those adults think you're a threat they'll attack you!** "Trowa, what the _hell_ is your boyfriend _doing?!"  
  
Trowa gave him a sheepish look.  
  
Duos' worst fears were realized as Quatre stepped back. A dry twig snapped underneath his foot and the baby dinosaur let out a honking cry that alerted the other dinosaurs to his presence. What was obviously one of the parents let out a bellow and charged.  
  
"Shit! QUATRE LOOK OUT!" He tried to run and help but Wufei tackled him into the stream and wouldn't let him up again.  
  
The next few minutes were a blur as Duo could only watch what happened.   
Quatre had run into the centre of the herd and ducked as one of the adults swung its' spiked tail. **Oh God! He's goin' to get shishka-bobbed!**   
  
"Wufei, _let_ _go_!"  
  
The blonde sprinted towards a hollow log and dived in, just as the adult slammed its' tail into the log.  
  
**QUATRE!**  
  
------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Quatre realized belatedly that patting that baby was probably not the best idea he'd ever had. He heard Duo scream a warning and spent the next few minutes trying not to get skewered by tail spikes. **If I get out of this alive, I'm _never_ doing something like this again!**  
  
Those dinosaurs just wouldn't leave him alone!  
  
Spotting a hollow log, he made a run for it, diving in head first and   
crawling for his life. The adult that was chasing him slammed its' tail into the wood mere moments after him, missing his foot by a hairs breadth.Satisfied that the threat was over the herd moved on.  
  
"Quatre!" He could hear Trowa yelling his name faintly but he was too dazed to move.  
  
**I... I'm alive. I made it!** He was barely aware of Trowa dragging him out of the log, checking him for injury, and pulling him into a bone crushing hug.  
  
"Quatre, are you all right? What did you think you were doing? You could've been _killed_!" He'd never heard Trowa sound like that before. "Then the Manguanacs would've killed _me_!"  
  
**I'm _so_ loved** "Trowa, I'm fine" even he could hear the quaver in his voice. "I just wanted to pat a dinosaur. Duo said it was a herbivore so I figured it was safe to pat".  
  
"Now those were fuckin' _big_ lizards! I don't know about you, but I   
_really_ don't want to see what the bugs are like!" Duo had made his way over to Quatre and Trowa, with Wufei hovering not far behind him. "Q, just because I say that it's a herbivore doesn't _mean_ it's not dangerous.   
  
Damnit Wu, stop _hovering_!" He turned to give the chinese teen a mock   
glare. It didn't phase him very much and he kept hovering protectively over Duo. "They're pack animals whose natural habitat is chock full of predators that'll eat 'em at a moments notice. Those spikes just aren't there for decoration. They'll attack _anything_ they think is a threat".  
  
Duo looked rather bedraggled. He was dripping wet and his hair was coming out of its' plait worse than what it had been before. "Duo, what happened to you?"  
  
"Wu tackled me into the water when I tried to help"  
  
Quatre was tempted to break into a victory dance but settled for doing it mentally. **It's not going to take much pushing to get these two together**  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
After the excitement at the stream, the pilots had decided to head back   
towards the OZ camp. Duo had cooled down and was now walking without his black over shirt. Wufei wasn't _quite_ sure where it had disappeared to. **I don't think Duo's very happy with me for knocking him into the water, or at Yui for ripping his shirt. I don't want him mad at me. I was only protecting him. I don't want to loose him before I know I even had a chance at gaining him!**  
  
He could hear a faint droning sound coming from over on his right. It   
sounded like some sort of machinery. "Does anybody else hear that?"  
  
"Hn. Let's go." Heero headed off in the direction of the noise.  
  
Two minutes later found the pilots crouching on a cock outcropping, watching as OZ soldiers drove a large group of varying dinosaur species into a panic. Much of the equipment they were using was state of the art.  
  
"Look at the armour on those vehicles" noted Trowa. "They knew what they were coming after. Duo, can you identify any of those dinosaurs?"  
  
"Yep" He moved to where Trowa and Wufei were. By the look in his eyes he was Not Happy with what he was seeing.  
  
"See that one over there?" He pointed to a small bipedal dinosaur that OZ soldiers had surrounded. "That's a Pakiseph....Pakise...a Paki. It's domed head has a _really_ thick skull... kinda like Heero's" He shot an impish grin in the boys direction. "It's been theorized that the males would have head buttin' contests to choose their mates. When its head goes down it pretty much becomes a livin', breathin' batterin' ram".  
  
As he spoke the Paki did just that, running at one of the OZ officers   
standing behind the door of his car. It slammed its' head into the door, knocking it off its' hinges and sending the officer out the other side of the car.  
  
Duo started snickering. "Just like that!"  
  
Wufei fought back the urge to laugh. A glint of silver caught his attention.   
  
**Zechs Merquise! What's _he_ doing here?**  
  
Duo had seen him too. "Oh, look. Lieutenant Buckethead himself is here   
leadin' the charge. Y'know if I were him, I'd be embarrased to be seen in public wearing a downsized trash can on my head! Hey! I wonder if he gets a tan line? Or helmet hair? What if he hits his head, does that thing echo? I'll bet it does. Hey Heero, before we have to go can we throw somethin' at Zechs' head just to see if it echos? Pleeeeeaaasee?" He started giving Heero puppy dog eyes.  
  
Wufei chuckled quietly. **Duo, you're encouragable.**  
  
----------------------------------------------------  
  
Heero watched with interest as the soldiers began to bring out ropes. **All the high tech equipment in the world and they're going to use _ropes_ to capture these things?**  
  
The next few minutes proved to be quite entertaining as the OZ soldiers   
discovered that maybe what they were doing wasn't exactly the smartest   
thing.  
  
**They don't have a clue what they're doing.** Heero thought as he watched a group of soldiers lasso a crested, large bipedal dinosaur. **Go for the legs baka's.** He smirked as the dinosaur flicked its head, sending two soldiers flying through the air as they held onto the ropes for dear life.  
  
Finally some of the soldiers got a clue and tripped the dinosaur. **Time to head back to camp and make plans**.  
  
He crawled back until he was certain that the soldiers down below couldn't see him and stood up.  
  
"Heero...?" Duo looked at him questioningly.  
  
**At least he's cooled down now. I don't think Wufei would have appreciated him collapsing from heatstroke** He hid a smile. He knew what was going on, or would be going on between the two eventually, and he approved. He considered the two pilots to be brothers and was pleased that they were falling for each other. **If they don't do something soon though I may offer to help Quatre set the two of them up. I'll have to talk to him later**.  
  
The blonde pilot was going to be in for the surprise of his life.  
  
"Head back to camp. We need to make plans".  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
The moment the Gundam pilots reached their base camp Quatre grabbed Trowa and dragged him inside the stretch trailer, shutting the door behind him.  
  
"Quatre, what are you........"  
  
The rest of what Trowa was going to say was lost as the blonde let out a yell and started dancing around, punching the air, and looking totally and utterly ridiculous. **Victory dance** his mind supplied.  
  
"Trowa, did you see? Wufei and Duo, they.....he.....and..." He had a grin on his face a mile wide and was positively glowing with happiness. He was also having trouble connecting a coherent sentence together.  
  
**He's adorable when he's like this** "Slow down and start from the   
beginning. Slowly, and with breaths in-between sentences".  
  
Quatre poked his tongue out at him and tried again. "Did you see Wufei and Duo today? Wufei was actually showing _concern_ for Duo...._and_" he looked out the window to where the other three still were. "he's _still_ hovering over him!"  
  
Sure enough, when Trowa looked out the window, the Shenlong pilot was   
standing closer than was necessary to Duo and kept shooting him worried   
glances.  
  
"I give them another day, two days maximum. If they're not together by   
then....."  
  
The door opened and Heero walked through, shutting it behind him. "Quatre, Trowa, we need to talk".  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
**Uh oh. He sounds serious. What's wrong? Is something wrong with Duo?!** he quickly checked back outside again. Duo was fine. He and Wufei were playing googly eyes with each other, each trying not to let the other see. It was enough to make Quatre want to pull his hair out.  
  
"I'd like to help you set up Duo and Wufei".  
  
If it was humanly possible, Quatre's jaw would have been somewhere near the Earth's molten core. **Did Heero just say he wanted to help set up Duo and Wufei?** He started blinking rapidly.  
  
"What brought this about Heero?" Quatre could feel the surprise rolling off Trowa in waves. Trowa's eyes were wide, well his _eye_ was wide, he had a slight bang problem.  
  
"They deserve each other."  
  
Quatre waited for more but none was forthcoming. **Of course I shouldn't've expected more. This is Heero Yui we're talking about here. Master of the statue impersonation, member of Mutes 'R' Us!** "What did you have in mind?"  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  



	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Don't own 'em. Don't sue  
  
------------------------------------------------------  
  
"I can't believe you guys ripped my shirt off! And then _you_ go and knock me into the water. What the _hell_ did you do that for Wu? Q was gonna get shishka-bobbed and neither you _nor_ Heero were gonna do anythin'! You just stood there like....like..." Duo was in good form, despite nearly overheating earlier and getting nearly drowned by the boy of his dreams. He'd been ranting for over five minutes, ever since Heero had disappeared into the trailer.  
  
"It is better to lose one pilot than to lose two. Quatre got himself into the situation, he could get himself _out_ of it." Wufei crossed his arms and looked down at Duo in a way that set his teeth on edge.  
  
**Ohh I _swear_, If I didn't like the guy so much I'd deck 'im.**"Whatever Wu. Look, I'm hot, I'm wet, and I look like somethin' the cat dragged in. I'm gonna go and change".Turning on his heel, he stalked to the trailer and entered, completely missing the way Wufei followed him with his eyes.  
  
Entering the trailer, Duo found Heero, Trowa, and Quatre in deep discussion. All three froze and stared at him, making him feel like a specimen on a petri dish. "Eh heh. Hey guys! How's it goin'?"  
  
Quatre blushed and looked entirely too innocent. "Oh, uhh...nothing!   
Just....umm..discussing our next move against OZ". He shot a look to both Heero and Trowa that screamed 'Help! I'm drowning over here. Do   
_something_!'  
  
Duo held back a snicker. **I'll bet. What _are_ you up to now? Then again there's probably a big possibility that I _don't_ want to know!**. "Right, I'm gonna go an' change, then I'll join you."  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Duo was brushing out his hair when Heero reached the sleeping compartment. His mission, get Duo into something other than his usual clothing _and_ set him up with Wufei. The first part would be easy, he had a large number of tank-tops the boy could wear, and if push came to shove Wufei probably had something he could lend Duo until Quatre could take him shopping.  
  
The second part would take a little more work. **Ninmu Ryoukai**. With a smirk Heero entered the compartment and headed for his bag.  
  
Duo noticed him almost immediately. "Finished _planning_ already Yui?"  
  
He didn't miss the slight emphasis on the word 'planning'. For a brief   
second Heero froze. **Could he suspect something? K'so, he's never been   
_that_ observant before!** "Hn." He reached into his bag and started digging through for a spare tank-top.  
  
"Ah, the Universal Grunt language lives!" (1) Duo grinned at him and kept brushing his hair.  
  
Finding a spare tank-top Heero pulled it out and threw it at Duo, managing to hit him in the head with it. He suppressed a grin as the boy jumped and turned to him with wide, questioning eyes. **As Duo would say, Ten Points!....hn, he's rubbing off on me**  
  
"Wha?" Duo picked up the top and looked at it like it was some sort of   
alien.  
  
"You wear too much black."  
  
"And you want me to wear _this_?!"  
  
He didn't answer. Instead he scanned the room for Duo's bag. Finding it, he reached over and started rummaging through for a pair of _non-black_ pants.  
  
"YUI! What the _hell_ are you doing? That's _my_ bag!"  
  
Heero ignored him and kept rummaging, throwing items out on the bed when he found them. **Clothes, all black. He has to have _something_ non-black in here. Gun, spare ammo, Manga.....a dog-eared copy of 'Lord of the Rings'?! I didn't think he read anything other than manga!** He looked up into the face of a _very_ pissed off Shinigami.  
  
"I'll ask you _again_ Yui. Just what're doin' goin' through _my_ bag? Do you have _no_ sense of _privacy_?" Duo was raising his voice with each word.  
  
"You wear too much black. You'll overheat in this climate. You almost _did_ overheat" He pointed out as he went back to rummaging only to have the bag ripped out of his hands. He looked up and glared at Duo.  
  
The boy opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by Quatre, Trowa and Wufei getting stuck in the doorway, all three tried to get in the room at the same time. Finally Quatre squeezed through past a mildly embarrassed looking Wufei. "Duo, are you all right? We heard yelling!". Quatre looked between the two and the contents on the bed and raised and eyebrow.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Quatre had been highly embarrassed when Duo had walked in as he, Trowa, and Heero had been planning 'Operation: Get-together'. **Talk about being caught with my proverbial pants down! and those two didn't even help.**  
  
"Penny for your thoughts little one?" Trowa wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer where they were sitting in the small recreational area on the trailer.  
  
It was large as far as trailers went, just over a metre or two longer than an old bananna-bus, and a little wider. It was broken up into two sections. The front end was dedicated to work, with computers and other such things situated in there. The back end was the living area, with a small kitchenette, dining room, and rec-room at the very back. A sleeping compartment was situated between the computer work room and the dining room. It contained five beds - two bunk beds and one single. As of yet none of them had claimed a bed, but Heero had suggested placing Wufei and Duo together.  
  
That _had_ been a surprise when Heero had offered to help. "I'm thinking about nothing really..."  
  
For the second time that day they were interrupted during discussion, this time by Wufei. **At least _this_ time we weren't discussing him and Duo!**  
  
"Barton, Winner." He nodded to both of them on his way to the small fridge in the corner.  
  
**No time like the present to get this moving** Quatre gave a small smile. "So Wufei, what _do_ you think of Duo?"  
  
"I beg your pardon?" Wufei turned around holding a bottle of water in his hand.  
  
"Duo, long haired fellow pilot...You've only been eyeing him off for the past month or so. What do you think of him?" Quatre got up and moved over to Wufei. Placing his hands on his shoulder, he gently maneuvered the chinese boy into the seat between him and Trowa. **This way he can't make a fast escape if he doesn't like the question**  
  
"Winner....." His voice squeaked slightly. "Barton, control your lover!"  
  
"Sorry Wufei, you're going to have to answer this." He sounded amused. To the untrained eye Trowa would have looked calm, but Quatre could see the amusement in his one visible eye.  
  
"He is a good pilot. I believe that we sell him short sometimes though...He.." Wufei was squirming slightly.  
  
Quatre rolled his eyes. "Escaping the question won't help you, though I   
suppose I should have worded that better. How do you _feel_ about Duo?"   
Wufei opened his mouth to say something but Quatre continued. "I know what you told Trowa," **Well, sort of** Wufei blushed. "but I want to hear it out of your mouth. Don't _make_ me _look_ at you Chang."  
  
"He'll do it too. Trust me, you _don't_ want to be on the receiving end of this!"  
  
**Why Trowa, I do believe you're enjoying this.**  
  
Wufei's face was developing quite a decent blush.  
  
"Do you have _no_ concept of the word _privacy_?" Duo's voice reached them where they were sitting at the rec-room table. He sounded _mad_, as in I-am-Shinigami-and-you-have-seriously-pissed-me-off-prepare-to-have-a-scythe-shoved-up-where-the-sun-don't-shine. It was the kind of tone Duo usually reserved for when he was in Deathscythe.  
  
The three boys looked at each other, checked who was missing, and took off for the sleeping compartment to prevent possible bloodshed, tripping over each other in their hurry.  
  
The sight that greeted them was one of total chaos. Heero was standing near a bunk with nearly the entire contents of a bag on the bed. Duo was holding said bag and doing his best impersonation of Heero's 'Omae o korosu' glare.  
  
"Duo, are you all right? We heard yelling!" He took in the mess on the bed and raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess....spring cleaning?" (2)  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Oh _very_ funny Quatre, ha ha. Yui decided that I wear too much black, so he beans me with one of his tank-tops an' then starts pullin' stuff outta my bag _without_ my permission!".  
  
Wufei saw red. **How _dare_ he go through _my_ Duo's bag!** "Yui, explain yourself _now_". If the other pilots had not been there he would have called Yui out for that. Nobody touched his Duo's things without asking. Of course, he realized a couple of moments later, Duo wasn't his and that was half the problem.  
  
Heero didn't look in the least bit apologetic, actually he looked a little smug. "He wears too much black for this climate. I was searching for a pair of jeans or long pants that could be worn with the tank-top".  
  
"Hey, I _have_ a pair of jeans!"  
  
"They're black baka"  
  
"Oh"  
  
**I don't want Duo wearing _any_ of Yui's clothes** Jealousy was rearing it's ugly head again in Wufei. "He can borrow some of my clothes. Everybody _out_" When Duo made to move out of the room Wufei caught him by the wrist and pulled him back again. "Duo stay".  
  
Watching everybody leave Wufei caught the wink Quatre threw at him. **Damn meddling blonde. Just _what_ is he up to?**  
  
"Look, um...Wu.."  
  
"Wu_fei_, Maxwell, Wufei" He blinked **The boy's got me trained**  
  
"Whatever, look you don't have to lend me stuff. I do have my own clothes." Duo was fidgeting, looking everywhere but at Wufei.  
  
He arched an eyebrow. "And how much of that _isn't_ something black or dark coloured?" He already knew the answer.  
  
"Eh heh....none of it." Before Wufei could say anything else he continued. "Yeah, yeah, I _know_. Duo no baka an' all that crap, but it's all I've got. Clothing isn't exactly the highest thing on my priority list."  
  
Wufei reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know. Let's see what I have that you can wear."  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
When the other three pilots left the compartment they didn't go very far. Quatre was pressed up against the closed door trying to hear what was said and Heero was hovering just behind.  
  
**It can be a little frightening how determined those two can be when they put their minds to something. _Especially_ when they team up like they have now. Heero seems to see this as some sort of side mission. I almost feel sorry for Wufei and Duo** Thought Trowa as he watched his blonde lover and the Wing Zero pilot.  
  
"Oh my, I was right Trowa. Duo is going for a nice long shopping trip once this mission is over". The blonde called quietly back to him, determined look in his eyes.  
  
**Correction, I _do_ feel sorry for Wufei and Duo, especially Duo**  
  
"Heero, you listen. I'm having trouble hearing them, they've moved away from the door." Quatre relinquished his place at the door to Heero, but he didn't move very far away.  
  
Trowa had to fight back the laughter that was threatening to bubble over. Those two made one of the funniest pictures he had ever seen. Heero was now pressed up against the door with his ear to it. Quatre was hovering over his shoulder with his head tilted to one side as though trying to listen to what was going on. Without warning Heero turned and catapulted Quatre to the rec-room chair Trowa was sitting in. A second later Heero followed, flinging himself into another chair just as the sleeping compartment door opened.  
  
Wufei stepped out first with a look that plainly said 'Mine! touch and you die' that he appeared to be directing at Heero. **Quatre's probably doing another mental victory dance right about now**. He looked to the blonde sitting next to him, he was grinning from ear to ear, left hand twitching slightly. **_Definately_ doing a victory dance**.  
  
Duo followed Wufei out. His hair had been re-plaited, though it was still slightly damp from his earlier tumble into the stream. He was wearing a pair of faded jeans, with his boots, and a white T that clung to his form like a second skin. He looked good, which went a long way to explaining Wufei's touch-and-die expression. Trowa could already see the wheels turning in Quatre's had for his planned shopping trip with Duo. **The boy is doomed**.  
  
"So guys, what are we gonna do 'bout OZ?" Duo wasted no time getting down to business.  
  
"Hn."  
  
Trowa could have sworn he heard Duo mutter something about a 'Universal   
Grunt Language' as he walked past to get to a seat. Wufei followed behind and took the only spare seat next to Duo. Beside him Quatre gave a small smile, and he was sure he caught a look of amusement pass over Heero's face briefly. **Those two planned this! They don't waste any time do they? When did they organize this though? I was in the room the whole....oh sneaky. When I went to make Quatre a cup of tea. I'd wondered what those two were talking about.**  
  
Once Wufei and Duo were seated Heero began to outline his plan.  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
(1) This was a running joke between me and James (a guy in my Japanese class last year, he was also an anime fan....we actually did our last oral on anime characters **snicker**). He used to tell me that because he was a guy he'd have nowhere _near_ as much trouble surviving in a foreign country as me, a female, because males have something he called a 'Universal Grunt Language'. Something about each grunt has a different meaning.....don't ask   
^_^  
  
(2) A line from another of my favourite movies 'The Mummy'.  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------  
  
The camp was relatively quiet, except for the occasional hoot or moan from the captured dinosaurs. Zechs was sitting in the communications tent waiting for his call to Trieze to go through.  
  
**A good day today, though I do not approve of some of the methods Ludlow uses**. The man had discovered a Rex nest earlier in the day, the parents hadn't been around but Ludlow had decided that he just _had_ to have one. He had taken the baby and tied it with thick wires out near the local watering hole. The baby had been injured during its' capture, with a nasty gash on one of its legs. Zechs could do nothing to stop the man as he was under orders to 'play nice' and do what Ludlow said.  
  
"Zechs, I trust everything is going well?"  
  
"Well enough Trieze. We captured fifteen dinosaurs today alone."  
  
"I hear the sound of a 'but' in there old friend." Trieze had always been able to read Zechs like a book, even with the mask on.  
  
"I do not......" he tried to find a nice word for what he thought of Peter Ludlow and his methods, "agree with how Mr. Ludlow operates".  
  
Trieze chuckled. "You don't like him very much, do you? I knew you wouldn't, that's why I sent you."  
  
"..."  
  
"Ludlow is entirely too influential. I needed someone who wouldn't fall for his 'charming' personality." Trieze's dry tone gave a hint of what he thought of Peter Ludlow.  
  
"You needed someone you could trust to keep him in line."  
  
The dinosaurs in the camp started braying loudly.  
  
"In a manner of speaking, yes." Treize cocked his head to one side. "Tell me Zechs, have those dinosaurs been getting louder or is it just me?"  
  
He never got a chance to reply, a Triceratops chose that moment to barrel through the thin canvas of the communications tent. Zechs stared as it ran past. He then had to fling himself to the side as a pair of dinosaurs trampled through the area he had just vacated.  
  
Then his men started screaming.  
  
He was able to make out a few words of what they were yelling, something about the dinosaurs were loose.  
  
**I would never have known** He briefly wondered why human nature dictated that somebody _always_ had to state the obvious in situations like this, usually screaming at the top of their lungs.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
The Gundam pilots were perched behind a convenient outcropping of rocks   
watching the chaos unfold in the OZ camp. Duo started snickering as he   
watched trained professionals forget _everything_ they had ever been taught and start running around in circles screaming.  
  
**There's never a camera around when you need one** He thought to himself as one officer went flying through the air, landing a good distance away in a small bush. **Ouch! I'll bet that hurt**  
  
"Duo, Quatre" Heero called out quietly, not that OZ would have heard them with everything going on, but Heero was being careful. "There is a watering hole situated 50 meters in that direction, make sure there are no other dinosaurs hidden there. Wufei, Trowa, you're with me."  
  
"Gotcha Heero. C'mon Q. We're goin' dino huntin'". He crawled to the   
relative cover of the trees, stood up, and waited for the blonde to reach him.  
  
While he was waiting he watched Wufei, as he too crawled towards the trees before standing up where he was standing.  
  
"Duo, be careful." was that concern he saw in Wufei's eyes?  
  
**Naaah, must be a trick of the light. There's no _way_ he'd ever be   
concerned about me anywhere but in my dreams. Love ya Wu. I just wish you returned the feelings** "Hey, it's me! Careful Wu, or I might start thinkin' ya cared."  
  
"Maxwell...."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Wu_fei_, I _know_. Now amscray before Yui comes and drags your butt off."  
  
He watched as the Chinese teen gave him one last look and disappeared into the night with Trowa and Heero. **Why is he being so nice to me all of a sudden? First at the stream, he actually _carried_ me. He didn't have to do that. That was nice... I haven't felt safe like that in a long time.  
  
Then he lent me some of his clothes. He didn't have to do that. I could've worn my stuff an' one of Heero's tank tops.** He pulled a face and then jumped when he felt a hand on his arm. Spinning he prepared to deck whoever it was but stopped the action when he saw who had startled him.  
  
Quatre instinctively ducked before flashing him a sheepish grin. "Sorry. Let's go check out this water hole and then get back to camp."  
  
"Sure thing Quat. Lead the way" He fell into step just behind and to the side of the blonde and went back to his thoughts.  
  
**I'm glad I don't have to wear one of Heero's tanks. How many of those   
things has he _got_ anyway? He's always wearin' them. When Wu said that he was lending me some clothes I thought for a minute that I was gonna end up with some of those funny pants of his. They look good on him, but on me they woulda looked really funny.  
  
I hadn't realized Wu had western style clothes. He never wears them......He sure knows how to put together an outfit though!** He smiled softly as he remembered what had happened earlier in the trailer. Wufei had been very picky on what Duo could wear. Tops and jeans had been discarded because they didn't look right together, or they didn't look quite right on him. He must have tried on at _least_ five different outfits before Wufei was even halfway satisfied.  
  
It was something completely new to Duo. He was used to throwing on the first things he laid his hand on, never a problem when you wore almost nothing but black. **Chang Wufei, fashion designer. I'd never've believed it if I hadn't seen it. I wonder what else he hides under that exterior. He looks good when he smiles. Not that 'Justice is served' smirk of his either. When he smiles his whole face softens and lights up. He looks almost ethereal. It's times like those I realize why I fell for him.....and then he goes and acts like a real jerk and spoils it.** He was jerked out of his musings as Quatre let out a cry and took off toward the water hole at a run.  
  
"Shit! Q, what is it?" He ran after the blonde, mindful of any upstanding tree roots, there was no Wufei here to catch him this time.  
  
----------------------------------------------------------  
  
**Duo is being awfully quiet**. Quatre glanced briefly at the American. The boy appeared to be in deep thought, a soft smile playing over his features in the pale moonlight. Up ahead Quatre could just make out the watering hole. **I think I can see something tied down there. I'll have to get closer before I can tell for sure.**  
  
A few moments later the Arabian was absolutely positive. He started running towards whatever it was that was tied down. He could hear Duo calling out to him but he ignored it.  
  
Closer inspection revealed the dinosaur to be a juvenile......well he wasn't sure what. It was bipedal with a big head, two small - seemingly useless - arms, and powerful legs. It was tied down in the mud by thick wire cords. It had a nasty looking wound on its' right leg, which was going to definitely hinder its' movement. **If it can't move properly it'll become easy prey for predators....I can't just leave it here, it's OZ's fault it's injured in the first place. Our orders _were_ to stop OZ taking the local 'wildlife'...**Mind made up Quatre began work on freeing the....he'd have to check what it was with Duo when he got here.  
  
Duo came crashing through the underbrush moments later, mouth running faster than he could. "Jeez Quatre, _don't_ go takin' off like that without warnin'! You coulda tripped an' broken you pretty little neck. Then what would I tell Trowa? 'Sorry Tro, your boy toy slipped an' broke his neck in the dark', 'That's all right Duo'. He'd _kill_ me if anythin' happened to you. Then Heero'd kill me. Then the _Manguanacs_ would kill me! All forty of 'em!! I like my life thank you _very_ much!  
  
Are you even listening to me? Q you have entirely too many.......HOLY   
SHIT!!" Duo had been moving progressively closer as he ranted, and only just now caught sight of what the blonde was freeing. "Back away from that thing Quatre."  
  
Quatre didn't stop what he was doing. "Why?"  
  
"Quatre," Duo's voice took on a tone that one might use to explain something to a small child "do you even know what that _is_?"  
  
"No" He moved and pulled out one of the many stakes in the ground holding the wires in place. It came out with a wet SHLOP. "I figured you would tell me when you got here. It's _injured_ Duo. I'm taking it back to camp to fix its' leg."  
  
Duo's eyes widened and he started flapping his arms in a 'no' style   
gesture....either that or he suddenly thought he could fly. "No _way_!, Nuh uh, it's _not_ happenin' Q-ball. _That_ is a Tyrannosaurus-Rex! A carnivore, as in _meat_eater, do you get what I'm sayin' here? That thing _eats_ things like us and you want to take it back to _camp_. Are you _insane_? What if its' parents come lookin' for it? T-Rex has one of the largest olfactory thingies on the _planet_. Those suckers are gunna be able to track that kid from miles away! Do you _want_ to deal with pissed off parents with _really_ big sharp teeth? didn't think so, so let's just free the thing an' get outta here huh?" Duo's eyes had taken on a hunted expression and were darting from shadow to shadow, as though looking for the parents.  
  
Pulling the last stake out, Quatre struggled to pick up the baby and turned to Duo. "I'm taking it back." He turned his _look_ on Duo.  
  
"Oh _no_, you are _not_ giving me that look, you are _so_ not doing this to me" He tried to glare at Quatre but it didn't seem to work. "oh _fine_! But if it eats you don't come cryin' to me!" He stalked over and grabbed the head. "_I'll_ carry the head. Given _your_ track record with babysaurs it'll try and _eat_ you."  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Wufei was feeling quite uncomfortable. Ever since he had returned from the OZ camp, Heero and Trowa had been staring him out, and he'd been staring right back. **I refuse to give an inch to these two, especially Yui. _Why_ are they staring at me?! Do I have something on my face?** He resisted the urge to check himself over.  
  
Finally he bit. "Is something the matter Yui? Barton?"  
  
Heero folded his arms and gave Wufei a mild, for him at least, glare. "Just wondering how long you're gong to leave it before you tell Duo how you feel."  
  
**Not him too! Are they _all_ in on this?!** Wufei stared at Heero.  
  
"Excuse me Yui, but my private life is hardly any of your concern." He   
turned to leave but was stopped by Trowa grabbing his upper arm.  
"He's not going to wait forever Wufei."  
  
BANG All three pilots turned to the noise. One of the doors had been violently flung open. Duo came in, back first, carrying the front end of a baby dinosaur. Quatre followed after him with the legs and thrashing tail.  
  
"I want this to go on record that I was _against_ this idea!" Duo did not look happy.  
  
In unison all three turned and looked at Quatre, the blonde at least had the decency to blush. "OZ tied it down with wires and injured it. I couldn't just _leave_ it there".  
  
The two moved to put the baby on the table and Wufei got his first good look at it. **That looks like a Tyrannosaur....** He may not have known the names of _all_ the dinosaurs, but even he could recognize one of the most famous. **a noisy Tyrannosaur at that** In the past few minutes the baby T-Rex had been getting rather vocal, letting out odd sounds that Wufei guessed were calls to its' parents. "Other animals are going to hear that."  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
It was a good five minutes before it was safe for Zechs to crawl out from where the tent had fallen on him. His helmet may annoy him at times, but now was not one of them. A support beam for the tent had fallen on his head at some time during the stampede. His helmet had saved him from what would possibly have been a rather nasty bruise.  
  
Zechs got his first good look at the damage to the camp. The place was   
almost completely flattened. A whimpering off to his left caught his   
attention. Mr. Ludlow was cowering behind an upturned trailer.  
  
**Damn. They missed him!** "Mr. Ludlow, are you all right?"  
  
The man turned to him with a dazed look "I don't know, do I look all right?" [1]  
  
"Yes" **Unfortunately**. Moving on he examined the rest of the camp. Nobody _appeared_ to be seriously injured, the worst damage was to the camp itself.  
  
"Sir, Sir!" One of the countless officers came running up to him, something in his hand.  
  
"What is it ensign..."  
  
"Dieter sir" He held out the object in his hand. "The stampede was not an accident sir, we found this near one of the cages" Zechs took it and   
examined it. [2]  
  
"Sir!" Another officer came running up. Zechs at least remembered this ones name.  
  
"What is it RJay?" [3]  
  
"The baby Rex is gone Sir".  
  
"Escaped?" Given what he had just been shown he was certain that that   
possibility wasn't so.  
  
"No Sir. Somebody freed it. There are footprints all around, and they lead off towards the cliffs. What should we do Sir?"  
  
" Grab what is salvageable and easily carryable. I'll lead a team to follow those tracks"  
  
Ludlow appeared to have recovered from his cowering fit and had wandered over. "Would somebody _please_ tell me what is going on?"  
  
Zechs turned and stared the man down. "We are not alone". He dropped the item Dieter had given him and stalked off to prepare a team. He was pretty sure _who_ their company was.  
  
Ludlow was left staring at Zech's back. Bending down he picked up the item he had dropped. It was a cleanly cut padlock.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Heero had sent Trowa out with Quatre to watch for OZ patrols. That left Duo, Wufei, and himself to fix up the baby dinosaur and set it loose before its parents came looking for it. Duo's warning was still ringing in Trowa's ears.  
  
//"If you run into the parents for gods sake _don't_ move! The T-Rex's   
visual acuity is based on movement. If you don't move it can't see you"//   
  
The long haired boy had been rather worried when the pair had left him with the other two pilots.  
  
Trowa had offered to take Duo with them but the boy had declined, handing them a communicator stating that it would take three to tend the baby, two to hold it down and one to fix the wound. He'd then given them the warning and pushed them out the door.  
  
Off to his left Trowa noticed some broken bushes. **Did Quatre and Duo try and hide their path when they came back, or did they come straight here?**   
  
"Quatre, which way did you come back to camp?" He had his suspicions. If he was right they could probably expect OZ to find them any time now.  
  
"From over there" Quatre pointed in the direction of the broken bushes. His eyes widened when he saw them. "We forgot to cover our tracks".  
  
Trowa placed a hand on the blondes shoulder before he could begin to berate himself. "It's all right. You were concerned for the baby, and Duo was hardly in a frame of mind to remember. Let it go and let's check for OZ patrols."  
  
He nodded. "Just let me tell the others first." He pulled out his   
communicator and proceeded to call the others.  
  
While Quatre was calling the other pilots Trowa skirted ahead to examine just how much damage was done to the shrubbery. It wasn't that bad. If you weren't trained to look for things like that you'd probably miss it, or chalk it up to local animals. Unfortunately, with the OZ team being led by Zechs Merquise the chances of that happening were slim.  
  
A distant, blood chilling roar broke Trowa from his thoughts. The answering one, somewhat closer, made Trowa worry. **I hope that's not the parents**.  
  
"I hope that's not the parents. I've told them, let's go" Quatre came up behind him voicing the same concerns as him.  
  
Nodding Trowa headed down the path.  
  
Five minutes later they were ambushed by Zechs Merquise and half a dozen heavily armed men, they never stood a chance.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
[1] From Jurassic Park 2  
  
[2] &[3] Dino fodder 'R' us. These two are from Jurassic Park 2  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  



	4. Chapter 4

After a bit of a break I'm back with the next bit of Reptiles ^_^. This is all for a bit. I've hit a mental block and final term of Uni for the year so that's going to take up a bit of my time (^(&)(*^*&%#$Z%#$%#@ assignments ^%$#$#@#$%#%#$@ exams.  
  
Anyway on with the fic!!!!!  
  
"Talking"   
  
**Thoughts**   
  
---------------character change----------------------   
  
(I think that's it)   
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------   
  
Duo was _not_ a very happy Gundam pilot.  
  
He was currently holding the head of a Tyrannosaurus-Rex. A _live_ Tyrannosaurus-Rex.....Okay so it was a baby but the point of the matter was he was holding the head of one of _the_ most dangerous predators alive. It was injured. It was in pain......and it was currently trying to bite his hand off! **I so do _not_ want to be here!**  
  
Wufei had it slightly better than him. He had the legs, which may have been a curse in itself. He was alternately trying not to get kicked by powerful legs, or hit by the tail. He looked pissed, then again he wouldn't be happy either if he had a tail constantly hitting him upside the head.  
  
Duo winced as Wufei caught another one-two combination of foot and tail. "Heero, how much longer? This thing is seriously _not_ happy!"  
  
In the distance two dinosaur roared.  
  
**Oh, _shit_!. Ohshitohshitohshitohshit! Please don't let that be the parents. _Please_ _don't_ let that be the parents**. Duo was scared. He'd laughed in the face of death countless times without the slightest hint of fear. Hell, he was a Gundam pilot, he was _supposed_ to risk his life, but the thought of being eaten alive by an angry T-Rex was not something that made him feel all gooey inside.......quite the opposite actually. "Heero, hurry up, I've got a _really_ bad feeling about this!".  
  
The baby started squirming even more in answer to the roars. Heero glanced out the window and started wrapping a bandage on the baby's leg. "I'm almost finished."  
  
When Duo thought things couldn't get any worse they did. It started to rain. Not a gentle summer rain mind you, it started to piss down in buckets.   
  
**Great. So now, not only do we have two possible adult T-Rex's on the way, it's pissin' down and visibility is low. We won't see them 'till they're right on top of us!**  
  
The dinosaurs roared again, this time _much_ closer.  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Quatre glared at his captors, and in the distance two dinosaurs roared again. His chest was aching like crazy. Duo, Heero, and Wufei were in serious trouble, he was certain of it. His Uchuu no Kokoro had started up almost the minute Zechs and his goon squad had captured Trowa and himself. He didn't know what was worse, knowing his friends were in serious danger, or knowing his friends were in serious danger and not being able to _do_ anything!  
  
Currently they were being marched back towards their camp. Zechs obviously wanted o capture the other pilots as well. Quatre looked around at his captors. There were six in total, seven if you counted ol' Tin Can. Quatre smirked slightly, he paid more attention to Duo's babblings than the boy thought. He had a way with insults that was unequaled. All of them were heavily armed, and one of them carried a large amount of rope looped around him and over one shoulder. It was probably meant to tie them up with, though if they thought a mere rope was going to hold Heero they had another thing coming.  
  
Zechs stopped the group and motioned for quiet. **What's he doing? If I yell I _think_ the guys will hear me**. He opened his mouth to let out a scream and found himself face to face with the barrel of Merquise's gun.  
  
"I think not Gundam pilot".  
  
**Damn. That won't work.** "You don't want to shoot me."**Don't mention the others, he has no evidence that there are any others here apart from Trowa and I.**  
  
"Perhaps."  
  
The group lapsed into silence again. Zechs and his troops appeared to be waiting for something, but he wasn't sure what.  
  
Finally, after what seemed hours of standing in silence, a faint booming could be heard, and it was getting progressively louder. Then a deafening roar, and a T-Rex crashed past them, heading straight for the trailer.  
  
**Oh no! I have to warn Duo......** Mindless of the OZ soldiers around him Quatre reached into his pocket and pulled out the communicator. "Duo, DUO ANSWER ME!!" **C'mon, pick up. Pickuppickuppickuppickup, why won't he answer......** Surprisingly, Merquise and his men didn't try and stop him.  
  
Then the rain started.  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
They didn't see the T-Rex's until they were looking through the windows. All Wufei could see was a _large_ eye and a small amount of face.  
  
**Those things are _huge_. If that's the eye I _really_ don't want to see the rest of it!**. Duo hadn't spotted it yet, but all he had to do was turn around and he would be face to eyeball with it. **Do I tell him or not? I don't want him to panic, he already looks scared, but if I don't tell him and he sees it he might do something drastic.** Mind made up, Wufei made to   
warn the long haired boy. "Duo...."  
  
The dinosaur let loose with a massive roar. Duo screamed and loosened his hold on the baby, who let out a quieter version of the roar. The parent nudged the trailer with it's nose, rocking them. Wufei watched as Duo staggered into a wall, the boy was trying his hardest not to hyperventilate. His face had drained of all colour and his expression had gone blank. The   
worst part was his eyes. If eyes were the window to the soul, then his soul was screaming out in terror.  
  
Heero lunged around the motionless Duo and grabbed the baby's head, shooting the boy a concerned look as he went. "Wufei, help me carry this. We're going to let the baby out to its' parents."  
  
With a little bit of effort the two pilots were able to get the baby out to its' parents. Wufei watched as they wandered back into the forest.  
  
"Duo...." Heero's tone was softer than he'd ever heard. Turning around he noticed that Duo was still frozen in place, wide eyed.  
  
Heero glared at him, it was a look that seemed to say '_you_ do something about this'. Wufei glared back at the boy and walked to Duo, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Duo, are you alright?"  
  
He stood for a moment and then snapped back to himself. "Wu, we've _got_ to get out of here _now_. That wasn't hunting behaviour. Since we moved the baby they may think that this is now part of their nesting area. We have to _move_!!"  
  
Duo turned to Heero and latched onto his arm. "Heero....." He trailed off as he looked up. If it was at all possible he got paler. "To late. HANG ON!!!"  
  
It was the only warning they got before the trailer lurched.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
They were close enough to the camp now that the sounds of protesting metal could be heard. **That doesn't sound good. What the hell is going on out there?** Trowa looked over to Quatre. The boy had given up trying to contact the other three and was currently worrying his lip and rubbing at his chest.  
  
There was a faint screeching sound, then a booming as the two T-Rex left, and then an almost unearthly silence. Merquise motioned for the group to move forward towards the camp again.  
  
"There may be survivors. I'll take our two 'friends' here to check it out. Costas, RJay, Dieter, you're with me. The rest of you head back to camp and prepare to move out.  
  
**You damn well better bet there's survivors. We're a lot harder to kill than that!** Trowa glowered at the blonde mans back as they continued towards camp.  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Heero was worried.  
  
No scratch that, Heero was beyond worried. The direction those two dinosaurs appeared to be pushing them......Realization struck about the same time that the back part of the trailer began to slope downwards. "Hang on to something, they're going to push us off the cliff!"  
  
The next instant proved his prediction correct as the back end drastically tipped. Anything that wasn't bolted down fell onto the large window at the back of the trailer.  
  
Then they were vertical. Heero watched as Duo and Wufei made last minute grabs at anything that was bolted down for a handhold. Wufei caught the edge of the dining table and swung himself onto the seats. Duo caught a cupboard handle and found himself hanging in mid-air.  
  
**That cupboard is not going to hold for very long.** "Duo, Try and swing yourself over towards Wufei."  
  
"Right." As the American reached out towards Wufei and the cupboard door finally gave, swinging open, spilling it's meagre contents causing Duo to loose his already precarious grip.  
  
Heero could only watch horrified as Duo plummeted towards the glass window.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"DUO!" Wufei tried to grab the long haired teen as he fell past him but to no avail. **I never told him how I felt**. He winced as Duo slammed into the glass window and held his breath.  
  
The window held.  
  
"Duo, are you all right? Speak to me. DUO!". Wufei began to _carefully_ make his way down to the teen. Already he could see a network of cracks beginning to form around his body.  
  
He sighed in relief as he heard the boy groan. "Oowwww. Ow. owowowowowowowow _OW_!"  
  
**If he can complain he can't be that bad.**  
  
"Wu?"  
  
The Chinese boy froze."Yes Duo?" The voice had been so faint he almost didn't hear it.  
  
"Please tell me I'm not where I think I am.....oh shit........" Duo began to slowly move, making the cracks grow larger. "Get me off of here, oh God...Somebody _please_ get me off of here...."  
  
Wufei's heart was in his mouth. If Duo kept moving like that, and if nobody got to him in time it was very likely that the glass would break. **He's going to die.....NO! Not again! I'll not let him. I refuse to loose somebody else! He can't go until I tell him how I feel......If you don't get a move on Chang you won't get that chance, now _move_**. Throwing caution to the wind, Wufei made his way down the trailer. Within moments he was almost within touching distance of the boy.  
  
"Duo," He reached out a hand to the long haired boy, making sure his other was firmly anchored on a piece of bolted down furniture. "Give me your hand."  
  
"Wu," Duo's voice was trembling. "I don't think I can. If I move too much this glass will break".  
  
"Yes, you can Duo. Just slowly reach out and give me your hand." Wufei watched as Duo did what he was told. "That's it. You can do it. Just give me your hand."  
  
Duo's hand was almost within reach as the glass began cracking ominously. Wufei lunged the last couple of centimetres as the glass shattered beneath the boys body.  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
The first thing that greeted Zechs Merquise when he entered the cliff clearing of the Gundam Pilots camp was the trailer hanging halfway off the edge of the cliff. He heard the blonde pilot utter an exclamation as he came within view. The taller pilot with the strange hair was unnervingly silent. He wondered, not for the first time, what went into choosing a Gundam pilot.   
  
  
"Costas, search the area. The adult Rex's may still be around. Dieter, go and tie that rope around a tree close enough to the trailer to reach the end hanging off the cliff." He turned towards the two Gundam pilots. The tall pilot had a protective hand on the shoulder of the blonde.**Interesting** "I trust you two won't go running off on me."  
  
  
Dieter had finished tying the rope to a tree. "Dieter, take the rope through the front window. Walk through the trailer until you reach the edge and throw the excess down to anyone in the lower section. I imagine they may want to climb up."  
  
  
The man nodded and climbed his way through the shattered front window, disappearing into the darkness. The rain, which had begun to ease up, became heavy again.  
  
  
Close by a Tyrannosaurus-Rex roared. The two pilots exchanged glances and began backing away into the forest. RJay raised his gun.  
  
  
"It's safer. T-Rex can only see you if you move," The tall one murmured, "and the forest provides cover".  
  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
Duo could feel the glass breaking underneath him, he felt it when it shattered. His only coherent thought was something along the lines of 'oh _fuuuuuuuuck_' before he was falling. **This might hurt a little**.  
  
  
Then his right shoulder was nearly ripped out of its' socket. "OW!". He looked down and fought a wave of panic, it was a looooooooong way to the bottom and he was dangling in mid-air. He let out a whimper.  
  
  
"DUO! Are you alright?". He looked up into the concerned eyes of Wufei. The Chinese boy was hanging half in, half out of the trailer. One arm was attached onto something inside, the other had a death grip on his right wrist.  
  
  
Heero appeared on the other side of Wufei. "Duo, throw up your other arm, we'll pull you up."  
  
  
"Right, you don't have to tell me twice". He swung his left arm and found himself hauled up in record time. "Anybody know how we're goin' to get outta here? Exit A isn't one I'd suggest".  
  
  
"Hey you!" A voice from up above caused all three to look up. An OZ officer was standing there with an end of rope in his hands.  
  
  
**If he's here, where are Quatre and Trowa? Quatre'd better be prepared to run. I warned 'im that bringin' a T-Rex to camp was a _really_ bad idea, but noooooo.** "You gunna throw that rope down or are ya just gonna taunt us with it?" He heard the trailer groan and it shifted a little "Hurry up an' make up your mind or you'll go down with us on this thing."  
  
  
"Orders." He threw the rope.  
  
  
Heero grabbed it first and began to climb.  
  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
**I'm climbing up next. If something happens I can protect Duo. I don't think he's in any shape for surprises at the moment.** Wufei looked over at Duo. The plait was coming undone again. He must have cut his forehead at some time, as blood was dribbling down the side of his face. Closer inspection revealed a small cut on his left temple. Another cut graced his right arm and Wufei couldn't be sure that there weren't any other injuries on him.  
  
  
Once Heero had reached a reasonable distance Wufei reached for the rope. Outside a dinosaur roared very close to the trailer. It sounded like one of the T-Rex's. the OZ officer glanced behind him, drew his gun and disappeared, presumably outside.  
  
  
Wufei began to climb, beneath him he felt Duo reach for the rope.The trailer shifted again. "Heero climb faster".  
  
  
"Hn." He didn't appear to move any faster.  
  
  
Then the trailer began to fall. Wufei closed his eyes. **This is it. Wo ai ni Duo. My only regret is I never told you how I felt. May I have that chance in the next life.** He felt the wind as the inside of the trailer rushed past. He opened his eyes as the front window fell past him.  
  
  
"Oh SHIT! shitshitshitshitshitshitshit _shit_!. that was too close, everybody still alive? hey what happened to that OZ officer? Did he get off or what? Oh, I can't _believe_ we survived that! You can start climbing any time now Yui. I mean I enjoy hanging around as much as the next person but the rope is getting wet from this rain."  
  
  
Wufei was beginning to notice a pattern to Duo's babbling rants. He only began to babble like he was currently when he was emotional about something. If his voice was anything to go by, he was fighting down panic. "Yui, climb."  
  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
The adult T-Rex came through the underbrush with almost no warning bar an ear shattering roar. Quatre nearly bolted, but Trowa placed a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Remember Duo's warning."  
  
  
With great difficulty Quatre froze. **This is my fault, if I hadn't bought that baby here this wouldn't have happened. Duo tried to warn me.**  
  
  
The man Zechs had named Dieter dived out of the trailer, gun drawn. His eyes widened when he saw the Tyrannosaur and he shot off a couple of rounds at it. the dinosaur roared and swung its' head in his direction. He began backing up.  
  
  
"Dieter, don't move!" Trowa tried to warn the officer.  
  
  
He didn't pay any attention and shot more rounds at it. Out of the corner of Quatre's eye he saw the trailer begin to move. **What's taking them so long? Why don't they climb up? They're going to be _killed_!**  
  
  
The T-Rex appeared to be unsure of what to chase, the annoying OZ officer shooting at it, or the trailer falling off the cliff. Its' mind was made up for it as the trailer disappeared off the edge with a shriek of metal.  
  
**Duo..Wufei...Heero! Please, let them have survived that.**Quatre turned to watch in horrified fascination as Dieter continued to fire at the T-Rex. It roared angrily and stomped towards him, head down near the grounds level.  
  
  
Dieter turned and ran but it was no use, the dinosaur caught up within a couple of strides. I picked him up by an arm and flung him into the air, paying no heed to the blood curdling screams Dieter was letting loose. when his head was facing the ground it caught him in its' mouth and bit down. the sickening sound of bones cracking and Dieter screaming churned Quatre's stomach.  
  
  
The mans legs were still kicking.  
  
  
Quatre shut his eyes and and fought back the urge to vomit as the other adult appeared, ripping the other half of Dieters still kicking body away from the other adult.  
  
  
Moments later they were gone, and Heero's head appeared at the top of the cliff. Trowa, Zechs, and the remaining OZ officers moved to help him up.Quatre swallowed. **May you rest in peace.** He moved to help the others on shaky legs.  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
The first thing Wufei noticed when he was pulled up was the presence of Zechs Merquise. He looked towards Heero who gave a nod of what, for him, passed as reassurance.  
  
  
Duo was pulled up last. The combination of the pouring rain, and his unplanned trip over the cliff care of pissed-off-daddy-dino air, added up to give him the appearance of a semi-drowned rat. [1]  
  
  
Wufei thought he'd never looked more beautiful. His feet without the permission of his brain, but the definite permission of his heart, moved towards Duo. The next thing either of them knew, Wufei was dragging Duo into a bone-crushing hug.  
  
  
"Wu, _air_"  
  
  
"Duo....." He loosened his hold slightly and looked down at the youth in his arms, loosing himself in those large violet eyes.  
  
  
"Yeah Wu?"  
  
  
"I......I thought I'd lost you, when you hit that glass.....I......I don't know what I'd do if I lost you before I......" He clamped up, realizing what he was about to say. **Wufei, you _idiot_! First you nearly choke the boy, _then_ you go and start babbling. how do you know if he even feels that way? You don't! So sit down and shut up while you still can!**  
  
  
"Before you _what_ Wu?" Was that hope he saw in Duo's eyes? He could _feel_ the combined looks of Heero, Trowa and Quatre.  
  
  
**Oh _hell_. To late to back out now, those three will kill me. The very worst he can do is totally reject me.**  
  
  
He pulled Duo fully onto his feet and bought him closer. "Wo ai ni."  
  
  
Duo blinked. "Um, Wu...I don't speak that much Chinese. What does 'Wo ai ni' mean?"  
  
  
"It _means_" Quatre sounded like he was about ready to bounce off figurative walls. "I....Love....You!"  
  
  
"Oh," Duo looked shell shocked. "Really?"  
  
  
"Yes. I love you Duo. I have for some time now." He lent in and brushed his lips against his in a feather light kiss before pulling away and looking at him. He still hadn't moved, he stood there with a shocked expression on his face. **I knew it! Now I've probably gone and ruined _everything_** He let go of Duo and turned to walk away.  
  
  
A hand snaked out and caught his wrist before he could get too far. "Wufei?"  
  
  
"Yes Duo?" **Don't get your hopes up. He could just be trying to let you down easy. _Why_ did I tell him?!**  
  
  
"Whoa eye knee" The pronunciation was a little off, but Wufei had no time to contemplate it...Duo glomped him.  
  
  
Hard.  
  
  
It sent him flying into the mud. The next thing he knew Duo was kissing him and all rational thought flew out the window.  
  
  
A loud whoop split the air, causing both boys to break off the kiss startled. Quatre was.....Quatre looked absolutely ridiculous, bouncing around and punching his fists into the air. Trowa caught him by the back of his shirt as he bounced by, preventing him from getting any closer to the cliff.....it didn't stop him from continuing to bounce though. Heero just stood there with a smug smirk.  
  
  
Wufei turned back to Duo with a bemused grin. He was still looking at Quatre, who now had a huge grin on his face and was talking a mile a minute while still bouncing. He reached out and took Duo's plait in his hand, wrapping it around his wrist, and pulled the boy in for another kiss. **Heh, I Knew there was another reason for this plait.....leverage**. Duo eagerly responded, and the new couple were soon completely oblivious to Quatre, who was _still_ doing that......thing, Trowa, Heero and a rather bemused Zechs Merquise.  
  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
[1] He looked kinda like a rat does just after you've washed 'em. They're wet, but they've shaken themselves off so that their fur sticks out in clumps. They always have this pissed off air about them **snicker**.  
  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
-tbc-  
  



End file.
